Road Test at Wimington RMV office in Massachusetts
I was quite scared for the RMV road test despite having ~10 years of driving experience off and on. This was due to the fact that:
- I have not had a very formal training in driving
- I got my foreign licence easily enough.
- The road test requirements of Massachusetts were not what I was used to — e.g. parallel parking, both hands on steering wheel, applying parking brake always and without pressing the button on it etc.
- The road test inspector checked my hand signals, vehicles signals and reverse signal.
- He asked me to drive and asked a left turn where there was no signal and I didn’t take my right of way as I was on the right of a vehicle that was taking a left turn and was left of me.
- I was told that speed limit is 20 mph although I didn’t see any sign like that. I followed the speed limit as told and when I took a blind turn, he got really angry as to why I was looking back on my right turns when there was no need. He later told that a glance back is okay but I should not spend much time into it.
- He also scolded me often for regularly looking into my rear view mirror .
- He asked me to pull up on the side of the road in a residential area and asked to back up the vehicle with control and slow speed.
- He then asked me to do a 3 point turn.
- We went back to parking lot where we started and then he asked me to parallel park behind a truck.
- I lowered my right side view window to have a look at the curb during the second part of the S maneuver but he scolded me about it and covered that mirror with his notebook.
- I was able to do the first two parts of the S maneuver comfortably and then he asked me to put vehicle to park.
- He said I had passed the test! Hurray.
- I had practiced a lot for parallel parking
- I kept my motto as perfection in driving from a road test perspective
- I was aware that road test inspectors are supposed to be rude and I kept my cool overall.
- I thought I had failed the test early on because I didn't notice 20 mph speed limit and probably drove faster for a moment. The inspector seemed angry at this. After taking a blind turn, I thought speed limit would be 30 mph at a wide road in a residential area and the inspector again angrily reminded me of 20 mph as speed limit. Thankfully, he didn't fail me. Good that I was able to keep calm despite these.
